{"product_id":"the-skull-and-the-nightingale-a-novel-isbn-9780062202369","title":"The Skull and the Nightingale: A Novel","description":"\u003cp\u003eMichael Irwin’s \u003cem\u003eThe Skull and the Nightingale\u003c\/em\u003e is a chilling and deliciously dark, literary novel of manipulation and sex, intrigue and seduction, set in 18th-century England.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003eWhen Richard Fenwick returns to London, his wealthy godfather, James Gilbert, has an unexpected proposition. Gilbert has led a sedate life in Worcestershire, but feels the urge to experience, even vicariously, the extremes of human feeling: love, passion, and something much more sinister.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003eIt becomes apparent that Gilbert desires news filled with tales of carousing, flirtation, excess, and London’s more salacious side. But Gilbert’s elaborate and manipulative “experiments” into the workings of human behavior soon drag Richard into a Faustian vortex of betrayal and danger where lives are ruined and tragedy is only a step away.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003eWith echoes of \u003cem\u003eDangerous Liaisons\u003c\/em\u003e, Michael Irwin’s \u003cem\u003eThe Skull and the Nightingale\u003c\/em\u003e is an urgent period drama that seduces the senses.\u003c\/p\u003e | \u003cp\u003eA chilling and deliciously dark tale of manipulation, sex, and seduction in eighteenth-century England\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhen Richard Fenwick returns to London in 1761, his wealthy godfather, James Gilbert, has an unexpected proposition. Gilbert has led a sedate life in the country, but now feels the urge to experience, even vicariously, the extremes of human feeling: love, passion, and something much more sinister. He asks Richard to serve as his proxy and to write to him of his city adventures—tales of carousing, seduction, and excess. Richard rises to the challenge and delves deep into London's salacious side.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eGilbert's elaborate and manipulative \"experiments\" into the intimate workings of human behavior soon drag Richard into a vortex of betrayal, where lives are ruined and tragedy is only a step away. And when Richard does the unthinkable and falls in love, the stakes are raised and he must make a defining choice. But what sort of man has he by now become?\u003c\/p\u003e | \u003cp\u003e“I really admired and enjoyed it. The atmosphere, idiom and characters are great. The plotting is terrific. And I had a genuine shock at the end.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eJenny Uglow, author of The Lunar Men\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Richard Fenwick is a dashing, good-looking rake in the tradition of Boswell, William Hickey, Tom Jones and Roderick Random, and his fast-moving adventures among the pubs and petticoats have a twist in the tail that is startling and well worth waiting for.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eJeremy Lewis, author of Shades of Greene: One Generation of an English Family\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“This novel of manipulation and seduction evokes Pierre Choderlos de Laclos’s classic \u003ci\u003eLes Liaisons Dangereuses\u003c\/i\u003e. The author brings James Gilbert to chilling life and vividly renders the darker side of the Age of Enlightenment. Readers who like their history served up with conquest and betrayal will enjoy this page-turner.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“[A] provocative novel . . . This surprisingly dark story of twisted head-games and base instincts is, by turns, troubling and engrossing.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Evokes \u003ci\u003eTom Jones, The Crimson Petal and the White\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eLes Liaisons Dangereuses\u003c\/i\u003e. . . . Irwin has crafted a terrific historical novel, and an even better psychological thriller. A-” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eEntertainment Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Rollickingly enjoyable.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eLiterary Review\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“As Gilbert becomes ever more manipulative, and Fenwick falls in love with another pawn in his patron’s game, Irwin creates an atmospheric portrait of the Georgian world in which this ambivalent rake’s progress takes place.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eSunday Times (London)\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“This novel of manipulation and seduction evokes Pierre Choderlos de Laclos’s classic \u003ci\u003eLes Liaisons Dangereuses\u003c\/i\u003e. . . . [and] vividly renders the darker side of the Age of Enlightenment. Readers who like their history served up with conquest and betrayal will enjoy this page-turner.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“A dark, compelling tale of an eighteenth-century Faustus and his Mephistopheles, which troubles the reader with a growing unease from the start and never slackens pace right up to its disturbing conclusion.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eMaria McCann, author of As Meat Loves Salt and The Wilding\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“A well-written, expertly researched novel . . . Irwin brings the period and characters alove with his compelling dialogue and authentic historical detail. . . . [It] would be a good choice for a book club, as there are plenty of issues to discuss.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eHistorical Novel Society\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Amid Irwin’s spot-on descriptions of 18-century England’s squalor and splendor, the masquerades and dinner parties, this passion play mostly rests between the sheets where Lust lies. . . . Irwin’s secondary characters also fascinate . . . A tale of morals, intriguingly told.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews (starred review)\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"William Morrow Paperbacks","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44888123408613,"sku":"NP9780062202369","price":14.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780062202369.jpg?v=1730228205","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/the-skull-and-the-nightingale-a-novel-isbn-9780062202369","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}